Ayala Corp. warns against deepfaked JAZA posts

Ayala Corp. (AC), the country’s oldest conglomerate, over the weekend warned the public against deepfakes and fraudulent social media posts using the name and likeness of its chairman Jaime Augusto Zobel de Ayala to lure individuals into supposed investment opportunities.

In an advisory, AC said it only connects with the public through its official website and social media pages on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn.

“Ayala is not in any way associated with individuals or firms behind posts that invite the public to participate in an investment scheme,” the company said.

“We urge the public to be discerning. Please do not engage with these posts. Instead, report pages with such misleading content for violation of social media community guidelines,” it added.

Ayala Corp. is the holding company of the Ayala Group of Companies, with interests in real estate and hotels; financial services and insurance; telecommunications; water; industrial technologies; power; and automotive, outsourcing, and others.

Its portfolio includes Ayala Land Inc., Bank of the Philippine Islands, Globe Telecommunications Inc., and ACEN Corp., among others. —Jon Viktor D. Cabuenas/KG, GMA Integrated News